“I told them I expect to play next season,” Hardwick said Saturday in a phone interview. “I’m excited about it.”

Hardwick, 32, was reportedly considering retirement, but I’m sure the Chargers are happy to hear that their starting center will be back next season.

“I wanted to take a month off where I didn’t have to think about football,” said Hardwick. “I just wanted to be honest with where my body is, where my brain is, where we’re at and where we want to go. Just give an honest assessment. My body feels great. My brain feels great. I do think there’s better football ahead of me.”

Hardwick will be entering the final year of his current contract and is scheduled to make $3.4 million in 2014.